Improvement in the mode of manufacturing leather



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEO ADAM HIGKMAN AND EDWIN L. DAVENPORT, OF'ABINGDON, VA.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE MODE OF MANUFACTURING LEATHER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 866, dated August 1, 1838.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ADAM HICKMAN and EDWIN L. DAVENPORT, of the town of Abingdon, in the county of Washington and State of Virginia, have discovered a new and 1mproved Mode of Dressin g and Finishing Upper- Leat-her, to show whichwe beg leave to present a description of modus operandi of dressing and finishing upper-leather, as at present used,and a description of their mode.

The practice of finishing and dressing upperleather, as at present used, is when it is drawn from the vat, while wet it is shaved, then oiled on the grain side, the grain then turned and the flesh set down with a sleeker, then stuffed out. This is a process known to curriers as that of covering the flesh side with a composition of oil and tallow. It is then hung up to dry, and when fully dry taken down, beaten on a pin-block, then boarded up and the flesh set down with a stone instrument. These last operations are necessary to fit the leather for whitening, or dry-shaving, to remove the coating of oil and tallow, so that the leather may be prepared to receive the blacklng.

Our mode is this: When the leather is taken from the vat, Wet-shaved, oiled on the grain is considerable saving of labor. 1t excludes boarding up once, and leaves out the whole tedious routine and very laborious operation of dry-shaving, or, as it is commonly called, whitening, well known to all curriers as making a large amount of the labor sustained in flttingupper-leatherfor market. Theshoulder and flank is left much thicker. This is amatter of great importance, as the whitening, &c., cannot be done xvithoutreducing the thickness of the leather and otherwise impairing its quality where it is already deficient.

What we claim as our dicovery, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The saving the labor of once whitening, boarding, and stoning in all kinds of upperleather, also avoiding the use of tallow, which is a very heavy tax, and simply using oil in its stead.

ADAM HlOKMAN.

EDWIN L. DAVENPORT.

Witnesses:

WM. K. HEISKELL, J osEPH LUREOUK. 

